Forum Help

If you want to ask about changing your username, have login problems, have password problems or a technical issue please email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com

Posting help:

If you want to ask why a word can't be typed, your signature's been changed, or a post has been deleted see the Forum Rules. If you don't find the answer you can ask forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com though due to volumes we can't guarantee replies.

Login to MSE Forum

Join the MSE Forum

Skimlinks adds tracking to some, primarily retailers' links, to show they come from this forum. For some retailers, instead of using Skimlinks to turn the link into a tracked link, we use affiliated links set up through other third parties. Then if it generates revenue from that, this site is paid. The links don't change the content, or what you see or track individual data ? but they do help fund this free forum. So we hope you choose to switch it on. See the full Skimlinks factsheet for more.

This is probably a really daft question, but I want a doorbell that doesn't need batteries replacing. I've been looking on Ebay and every doorbell I look at seems to need batteries. Is there no such thing as a doorbell that doesn't need batteries?

I've been searching for "wired doorbell" but the list that Ebay throws up still seems to have ones that need batteries. Currently we have some sort of plug in thing that hasn't worked in years, presumably because nobody changes the batteries. I don't even really know where it's plugged in.

Is there a particular name I'm supposed to use to find a doorbell that doesn't need batteries? If there is such a thing, I realise I'll need an electrician to fit it but surely this will work out cheaper than having to buy batteries all the time.

If anyone replies to this, I'm off into the relative wilderness from tomorrow til Monday and won't have much internet access so I won't read any replies til Monday - just in case people reply and then they don't see any further posts from me. I will definitely check in here again on Monday.

From a not-at-all-knowledgeable doorbell purchaser, thank you in advance for any help.

Personally - I had a battery-powered doorbell in my last house and it never once needed the batteries changing during the many years I lived there (over 20).

I did have to ask the next door neighbour to do something about his electric-powered doorbell - as I could hear its transformer sound coming through my walls. He had to pad it round to stop the noise coming through.

My current house had/has an electric powered doorbell. I wish it didnt. Guess I should have changed it to battery-powered. I've only had the house a few years - but had to change the doorbell transformer when I moved in (ie use an electrician that was here anyway - and have that as an extra job). Since then - I've had to have an electrician change the transformer again.

If I move again - I'll just rip out any electric doorbell and replace it with a battery one.

If there's "4 tendencies" type of people (Gretchen Rubin) = yep....Questioner type here
- Meets an expectation only if they believe it's justified and resists anything arbitrary or ineffective

I have a few unwanted brand new 240v mains bell transformers left over from a housing development, my daughter used to list them on Ebay and flogged a few but really wasn't much interest. I use door knockers on all rental property and refurbishment jobs now, you never get called out by tenants with a problem with their knockers!

We've had one of these: http://www.argos.co.uk/product/6249102 for the past 4 years and never had a problem with it. Given the £8 ASDA version we had before that only lasted 18 months before it stopped working, new batteries or not, it's very reliable to us, and we can't foresee a need to replace in the near future.

Thanks for your replies everyone!! I've got rather a lot of Googling/links to click with the all of the above.

moneyistooshorttomention, that sounds a bit scary but you have just encouraged me to do a good bit of research to make sure I don't end up with problems.

To everyone that suggested a door knocker, we do actually have one but for some reason people don't use it. I don't know if it's because we have a porch which encloses the front door plus knocker, then we have a plaque outside with the house no plus bell ringer attached (the one that hasn't worked for years) and I think that's why people keep trying to ring the bell. But the weird thing is - when we don't come to the door, NOBODY ever seems to figure out that the bell doesn't work. I have no idea why this is, but people call us and say "I rang and rang and nobody answered" and yet our door knocker is prominent once you step inside the porch, and the porch door is always ajar. Weird. If I ring someone's bell twice and get no answer, I will always try the knocker if there is one, but people just don't seem to do this with us and I'm kind of baffled.

How this site works

We think it's important you understand the strengths and limitations of the site. We're a journalistic website and aim to provide the best MoneySaving guides, tips, tools and techniques, but can't guarantee to be perfect, so do note you use the information at your own risk and we can't accept liability if things go wrong.

This info does not constitute financial advice, always do your own research on top to ensure it's right for your specific circumstances and remember we focus on rates not service.

Do note, while we always aim to give you accurate product info at the point of publication, unfortunately price and terms of products and deals can always be changed by the provider afterwards, so double check first.

We don't as a general policy investigate the solvency of companies mentioned (how likely they are to go bust), but there is a risk any company can struggle and it's rarely made public until it's too late (see the Section 75 guide for protection tips).

We often link to other websites, but we can't be responsible for their content.

Always remember anyone can post on the MSE forums, so it can be very different from our opinion.

MoneySavingExpert.com is part of the MoneySupermarket Group, but is entirely editorially independent. Its stance of putting consumers first is protected and enshrined in the legally-binding MSE Editorial Code.